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The 8 Characteristics of Motivated Kids
Julie Williams, education.com
Fostering motivation-a child's desire and drive to succeed-is a universal challenge for teachers and parents. A "well-motivated child" is a pleasure to teach. His hand shoots into the air during class discussions. He can't wait for that science lab, writing workshop, or even formal test. In fact, he'll cheerfully take on one challenge after another, handle setbacks, and keep moving forward, even if results aren't perfect.
Read more...
Survey: Women, minorities need STEM encouragement
Julie Williams, education.com
The science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) industry should make every effort to work from the top down to encourage women and minorities to pursue careers in those fields, according to a study by the Bayer Corp., a health-care and nutrition company.
Read more...
Why Kids Skip School and What You Can Do About it
Sue Douglass Fliess, education.com
If trends persist, 75% of today's students entering high school will not complete the post-secondary education required to thrive in our globalized world. Yikes. According to the Freshman Transition Initiative (FTI) of George Washington University, a student's plans for post-secondary education often hinges on the attitudes they develop in the 8th and 9th grade about themselves, their futures, and their educations.
Read more...
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Information Released on School Finance Impact; Contact Your Legislators!
The Kansas State Department of Education has released a
summary
of
HB 2739
, the school finance bill recommended by the House Education Budget committee, and computer print-outs showing the impact of that bill and the $172 million reduction in the school finance bill approved by the
House Appropriations Committee.
The House may be debating these two measures tomorrow or Wednesday. It is vital for school leaders to understand the impact of these proposals on their district and contact their
Representatives
immediately.
The KSDE information is available as follows. Computer printout
SF0145
provides detailed effects of this bill and computer printout
SF0146
is a summary of
SF0145
.
The
detailed summary
and the two printouts can be accessed on the School Finance Web site under "Recent Updates." The Web site is:
www.ksde.org/default.aspx?tabid=119
While the final version of
HB 2739
was being drafted this weekend, KASB opposes the following provisions of the bill.
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It cuts all districts by $85.9 million, equal to approximately $131 base budget per pupil, or 3.2 percent. This will lead to further reductions in staff and services to students at a time when educational standards and expectations continue to increase.
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It cuts a further $85.9 million from local option budget state aid, which will impact some districts far more severely than others, based solely on the property wealth of the districts. Districts will either have to cut their budgets MORE than the $131, or raise local property taxes.
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Although House leaders say taxes should not be increased, this bill would result in an $85.9 million property tax increase if districts seek to replace lost state LOB aid, with local increases varying from under one mill to nearly 50 districts with double-digit mill levy increases.
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Although school districts have been criticized for not directing more dollars to the classroom, the bill creates a new fund to allow districts to spend more on local activities and sports, while cutting the general fund that supports instruction.
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The bill authorizes two new property tax-based funds, the Local Activities Budget and the Equity Budget, neither of which receives state equalization aid. The result will likely be both higher property taxes in certain districts and further disparity in mill levies for districts seeking to use them.
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The bill eliminates high enrollment weighting and reduces other school finance weightings.
-
HB 2739
will require all districts have at least a 10 percent local option budget as a "local foundation budget," in addition to the 20-mill statewide levy and general state aid. The result will be different mill levies to fund the "foundation" requirement of the state.
KASB will continue to provide information on the impact of these measures.
Mark Tallman
Assistant Executive Director/Advocacy
mtallman@kasb.org
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solecism
SOL-uh-siz-uhm, noun:
1. A nonstandard usage or grammatical construction; also, a minor blunder in speech.
2. A breach of good manners or etiquette.
3. Any inconsistency, mistake, or impropriety.
An accurate report of anything that has ever been said in any parliament would be blather,
solecism
, verbiage and nonsense.
-- "Hansard of the Highlands", Times (London), February 17, 2001
Her English is good, apart from a few stubborn idiosyncrasies of preposition and tense, but these are music to me, sung
solecisms
-- how else to describe "I am already loving you," her first declaration of feeling for me, now two years old?
-- Ronan Bennett, The Catastrophist
In those days smoking in the streets was an unpardonable
solecism
.
-- Edmund Yates, Recollections
. . .another of her fabrications or flat-footed
solecisms
or, at any rate, a simple indication of the boundless ineptitude with which she manages Leonardo's affairs.
-- R.M. Berry, Leonardo's Horse
Solecism
comes from Latin soloecismus, from Greek soloikizein, "to speak incorrectly," from soloikos, "speaking incorrectly," literally, "an inhabitant of Soloi," a city in ancient Cilicia where a dialect regarded as substandard was spoken.
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Celebrate the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day by signing up for GEF's Green Thumb Challenge! Green Education Foundation (GEF) has teamed up with the Earth Day Network to launch a worldwide event in youth gardening on April 22, 2010. Whether planting bean seeds in recycled containers or jumpstarting a large garden project, your school or youth group can take part in this free initiative. To learn more about how to participate, visit
www.Gardens4EarthDay.org
.
The Green Thumb Challenge is the largest youth gardening campaign in history, calling on schools and youth groups to plant 10,000 indoor and outdoor gardens in 2010. In flower pots or on vegetable plots, in windowsills or on rooftops, the Green Thumb Challenge mobilizes a nation of Green Keepers to get growing!
Standards-based lessons,
activities
and
easy gardening instructions
are all provided on the program website:
www.greenthumbchallenge.org
.
Sign up today and receive a coupon for a $10 off a $50 purchase at Lowe's. Participants also gain free access to the GEF online community - an expansive global social network dedicated to environmental education. Additionally, all GEF members are eligible for a $5,000 grant!
The Green Thumb Challenge is sponsored by Lowe's and six of the world's leading garden suppliers. Schools and youth groups across the country are joining efforts to connect kids with nature and the healthy benefits of gardening. Be part of the movement.
Join Today!
Teacher Leader Assessment Pilot
Reminder: Those planning on participating in the Teacher Leader Assessment Pilot must submit an Intent to Participate form to KSDE by 4/1/10.
Recommendations from the Teaching in Kansas Commission and the Kansas Educational Leadership Commission to create a Teacher Leadership licensure endorsement was realized last fall with the State Board's approval of teacher leader standards and regulation changes. Educators across the state currently functioning as teacher leaders who meet the regulatory requirements and can demonstrate knowledge and application of the teacher leader standards are being recruited to participate in piloting the newly-created assessment to gain the new endorsement. Designed by a group of Kansas educators and the Educational Testing Service (ETS), the assessment is evidence-based, meaning it assesses both content and performance in the same instrument.
Piloting of the Kansas Teacher Leader Assessment (KTLA) is critical to ensure the assessment's validity and reliability. Those participating in the pilot will have the opportunity to take the assessment at no cost and prior to any required score attainment. In addition, after successful completion, participants will be able to apply for the Teacher Leader endorsement and the KSDE will pay each pilot participant $40 for completing the assessment and to offset the cost of the application fee.
Information regarding the assessment and its requirements can be found at
www.ksde.org/teacherleader . For questions, please contact Lynn Bechtel,
lbechtel@ksde.org , or Kathy Boyer,
kboyer@ksde.org
And the results are in………..
Congratulations to the Y-Weigh Winning Team of:
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Heather Casey
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Wendy Dobbs
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Becca Jones
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Gina McMahan
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Karen Parrett
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Ashley Razak
As a team, they:
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Lost 43lbs of body fat
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Increased lean muscle mass by 21lbs
Increase their Upper body strength by 100lbs
-
Increased their lower body strength by 620lbs
Improved their cardio-respiratory endurance by 76bpm
-
Lost 7 inches around their waists
-
Improved their flexibility by 12in
The next Y-Weigh Challenge begins April 5!
Contact Jeff Snyder at the YMCA for details!
Are you Spring Cleaning?
USD 204 Safety Driving Competition team is having a fund raiser to compete at state competition. We will be having a fund raising garage sale to help fund these expenses. We are accepting cash donations and donated goods at the bus barn. You can drop them off any time between 6am-5pm or we will pick up if needed. Contact 913-956-1153 for Dustin Arnett or 913-915-5153 for Debbie Elmer for more information.
Attention Spring cleaners! As you go through your children's toys, games, and DVD's please remember the District childcare. We would appreciate any donations.
Thanks,
Childcare staff
BSHS Spring Mower Cleanup is coming up!
This includes: Oil change, Cleaning of Spark plug, Clean air filter, Sharpen blade and scrap the deck. Mowers will be accepted by appointment, owners to drop off and pick up. If anything would need to be replaced, such as plug, filter, etc we will call with additional cost.
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3/24 - Don Cooley
3/25 - Heather Marmon
3/28 - Kathi Wilhite
3/29 - Ignacio Villaneda
3/31 - Pam Stewart |
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Mar 24, 1975:
North Vietnamese launch "Ho Chi Minh Campaign"
The North Vietnamese "Ho Chi Minh Campaign" begins. Despite the 1973 Paris Peace Accords cease fire, the fighting had continued between South Vietnamese forces and the North Vietnamese troops in South Vietnam. In December 1974, the North Vietnamese launched a major attack against the lightly defended province of Phuoc Long, located north of Saigon along the Cambodian border. They successfully overran the provincial capital at Phuoc Binh on January 6, 1975.
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